When I was a little girl, a good family friend often invited our family to dinner. This family friend was an excellent cook and not only turned out exquisite meals, but her table was laid with a white tablecloth, crystal, and silver. I was always a bit intimidated by this, especially the white tablecloth. My greatest fear was that I would spill something on it. As fate would have it, I spilled some gravy. I was mortified, and I'm sure my face showed it. Luckily I was seated next to the grandpa of the family. He looked at me, pulled out some change from his pocket, and promptly covered the stain with coins. I still remember his words, "Well, that pretty much covers it." What a demonstration of love. It wasn't until years later that I realized the spiritual lesson in this as a Christian.

In verse 4 of 1 Corinthians 13, we read, "love is patient, love is kind. The following verses are some cross-references:

Proverbs 10:12, "Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all transgressions."
Proverbs 17:9, "He who conceals a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates intimate friends."
1 Thessalonians 5:14, "We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone."

Do you see a theme of how biblical love covers and conceals? Notice it doesn't say love hides or blocks out a transgression; instead, it is a beautiful act of love reflected in Christ's atonement for our sin. I didn't intentionally spill gravy, but this kindly older gentleman took note of my pain and quickly acted to take that pain of my embarrassment away. He could have laughed and called attention to it, but instead, he chose to cover and conceal my stain. Christ chose to die on the cross for my sins. No other act of love and kindness can compare to that. 

The rest of verse 4 says, "love is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant." Jealousy, bragging, and arrogance are not words or behaviors that reflect love.

Acts 7:9 speaks of jealousy that lacks love. "The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. Yet God was with him."

In the case of Joseph, his brothers tried to hide or conceal their sinful act by selling him into slavery. Their jealousy got the best of them and led them down a dark path. Once jealousy takes root in our hearts, it can quickly become resentment or bitterness. Thinking becomes clouded and can result in terrible actions. I can imagine what the brothers' conversations might have been like. Pure speculative, of course, but it may have sounded like, "Why is Joseph always Dads favorite? I'm sick of all the attention he gets; he needs to disappear; let's make it happen."

1 Corinthians 4:6 speaks to the danger of arrogance, "Now these things brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and to Apollos for your sakes, so that in us you may learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one against the other." Paul explains what servants of Christ look like and how to avoid arrogance. He says they should be found to be trustworthy. He says we are not to pass judgment on others. We are to let the Lord reveal or bring to light the motives of men's hearts. Paul put himself and Apollos under the same guidelines. In other words, they, too, were servants of Christ, and the rules applied to them as well. The reason is so they would not exceed what is written so they wouldn't become puffed up. The word arrogance means to be puffed up with self-importance-which is pride.

Christ had to reconcile or settle the problem of mankind's sin. His final act of love was so powerful, so magnificent, so selfless, that the world can hardly comprehend this kind of love. Those many years ago, that kindly grandpa, as an act of love, covered my stain on the white tablecloth. I am reminded to live out the excellence of love for what He did for me. How can I do this? I need to pay attention and practice what love is according to His word. I also need to remember from whence I came and the stain of sin that was completely covered by my Savior, who died for me.

1 Peter 4:8 "Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins."